Not Gonna Be Alone From This Night On
by IloveNaruIno
Summary: The war has ended, Sasuke and Naruto have defeated Madara. Ino throws a private party to celebrate and some matchmaking ensues. This will be a night to remember,that's for sure. SasuSaku,NaruIno and other couples mentioned. Reviews will be greatly appreciated.
1. Chapter 1

No one could believe it, but the Fourth Great Ninja War has finally been put to an end. With an unlikely intervention from Sasuke, Naruto was able to defeat Madara and put a stop to all destruction he caused.

It took some time for the realization to sink in.

"You've gotten strong, Dobe", Sasuke commented, smirking.

"You're not bad yourself, Teme!", Naruto replied enthusiastically.

The two then joined the rest of their friends. Naruto was thankful most of them were alive. Maybe now he'll have time to have fun, or even find a girlfriend. The Hokage organized a party to celebrate the end of the war, and the village was bustling with people from all allied nations, who came to celebrate as well.

However, our party girl Ino wanted a more private party. She loved big parties, but this time she had some matchmaking in mind. And her place was perfect for that.

So she invited all of the remaining rookie nine and the Sand siblings to the party.

Sakura,Naruto and Sasuke were the first to show up. "Hey Ino-pig, looking good!" , Sakura said. Ino was wearing a simple short purple one-shoulder dress. "Hey Billboard-brow, nice dress." Sakura was wearing a red strapless dress with a bow belt.

Sasuke soon got annoyed with their girl talk and went to get a drink. For some reason, being near Sakura made him nervous. An Uchiha does not simply get nervous over a girl. Maybe it was the fact that deep down, he knew how much he hurt her, even though she hides it with that radiant smile of hers. Maybe it was because he knew she would never love him again. And maybe, just maybe ,it was because he realized he likes her a bit more than just a friend. Not that he would ever say that out loud. Ever.

Naruto was just about to say hi to the hostess of the party when he took the sight of her in. Her outfit had been simple, but very sexy and it looked amazing on her. After he got over Sakura, he began to notice Ino more. Her slim body, beautiful blond hair and teal eyes were to die for. He nearly got a nosebleed, and was just about to compliment her when Lee came in shouting about a youthful party and youthful night. The rest of their friends arrived shortly and the party was soon raging.

-A little while later-

"Time for some party games people!" Ino shouted. Sakura looked at her with fear. She knew that look in Ino's eyes, she was definitely up to no good. "First up is truth or dare. You must say the truth or go on with the dare, *whatever* it is :D",Ino said, smirking. "Sasuke, you're up first, truth or dare?"

Being the stuck up, proud Uchiha he was, without hesitation he answered: "Dare."

"Your dare will be to sing a love song."

Naruto nearly toppled over in laughter, and the others were snickering. Sasuke, singing a love song? This was going to be epic. 

Sasuke groaned in disgust, but he knew he had to go along with it.


	2. Chapter 2

He thought about the song he'd sing. He wanted a meaningful, deep song, which would show a certain girl how he feels, without openly revealing it. Then he remembered, Sakura loved Nickelback. Nickelback it was then.

He told Ino to play the song and he started singing.

"Just one more moment

That's all that's needed  
Like wounded soldiers

In need of healing

Time to be honest  
This time I'm bleeding  
Please don't dwell on it

Cause I didn't mean it"

Sakura was entranced by Sasuke and his voice. It wasn't that she was surprised he was singing well, it's just that it sounded like he means every word what he's singing. Plus, it was Nickelback. She had no idea how it turned out he was singing a song from her favorite band. She stopped thinking and continued listening.

"I can't believe I said I'd lay our love to the ground  
But it doesn't matter cause I made it up, forgive me now  
Every day I spend away, my soul's inside out

Gotta be some way that I can make it up to you now, somehow"

He turned his gaze to Sakura, and continued singing.

"I'd come for you

No one but you

I'd come for you

But only if you told me to

I'd fight for you

I'd lie, it's true

Give my life for you  
You know I'd always come for you"

Everyone saw who the Uchiha was looking at. No one could believe their eyes: he was basically pouring his heart out to Sakura. As the song went on, it became more and more obvious. Until even Sakura realized and began blushing furiously.

Near the end of the song, he began coming closer to her.

"No matter what gets in my way

As long as there's still life in me

No matter what, remember

You know I'd always come for you"

And as he sang the last verse, he leaned towards Sakura and kissed her on the lips. She kissed back instantly. His eyes shot wide open in surprise. He expected a slap, a push, a yell, but her kissing back? Definitely not. 

"Sasuke..." , she whispered.

"Sakura,I know I hurt you, and I know I can't be forgiven. I'm sorry" , he whispered, and began to walk away.

"Sasuke, stop."

He stopped in his tracks, but he couldn't look at her. That shaky voice... She was crying, and it was because of him... again.

Everyone was watching intently, and Sakura started talking.

"True, you hurt me. You tossed me aside like I was nothing. You were bent on revenge. But I felt sorry for you, you must have been so unfortunate to not have been loved by anyone since childhood. I wanted to be the one to love you. And others began loving you too, as a friend. But you betrayed us. I'm not the only one whose forgiveness you should be asking for, Sasuke."

He was now watching her, and every word of hers cut deep, but she was right. He didn't deserve to be forgiven. Not by her, not by anybody.

"I forgive you, Teme. I'm sure the others are willing to as well." Everyone nodded. "But we all know who was hurt the most here."

"I forgive you too, Sasuke."

He was surprised and thankful for the forgiveness of Naruto and others. The moment Sakura said she forgives him, he took her hand, hugged her and led her away to Ino's room. They had a lot to catch up on. A lot of cheering and wolf whistles were heard. "Can't wait for little Uchihas to be running around here!", they heard Naruto shouting. It was needless to say they both blushed scarlet. Yes, Sasuke Uchiha was blushing. And his blush would put a rose to shame.


	3. Chapter 3

It was needless to say that by the middle of the night a lot of other couples were formed. She was one of the very few that weren't a part of an item. It's not like she needed a guy, she was fine with being single. But just for once, she wished someone would sweep her off her feet. That someone being Naruto. God, not again! What the hell came over her all of a sudden? Sure, he was very good looking, funny, pleasant, and surprisingly understanding... "Ok, hold your horses",Ino told herself, while trying to calm down her erratic heartbeat. Maybe she had a thing for Naruto. Why realize it now of all times? How come she hasn't realized it before? It was so painfully obvious. How her heart skipped a beat when he smiled, how her face heated up when he talked to her, how her day brightened upon the sight of him, no matter how sad she might have been. Yup, it was obvious, and she was sure all her friends knew way before she did.

The game of truth and dare continued.

It was Ino's turn now. She said "Truth".

Sakura smirked evilly. Oh no.

"Tell us Ino, who do you like?"

"No one",she answered on impulse, blush grazing her cheeks.

"Oh come on, we know there's someone, tell us."

By now, Naruto was listening intently. He didn't know why, but the thought of Ino with someone else made him wanna go on a rampage.

"There's no one, Forehead. Are you up for some pizza, guys?"

"Yeah!" everyone shouted.

Ino smiled widely and went to order a couple of large ones. Naruto, on the other hand, wasn't so enthusiastic. He was relieved and unhappy at the same time. Relieved, because no one stole her heart, and unhappy, because he didn't steal it either. He watched her sadly, as she strolled down to the kitchen to prepare the dishes and set up the table.

"Maybe it's best if we're just friends",both of them thought, unaware of each other's exact same thoughts. 

Unusually, the pizzas were rather late. She wasn't sure as to how long she had been waiting for it, but once she decided to go and check if the pizza man was there yet, she found the living room half empty. Sasuke and Sakura were asleep in one room, Kiba and Hinata were in the other one, and the others were sitting in her garden. Naruto was nowhere to be found. Just as she was about to go look for him, the pizzas arrrived.

"We're terribly sorry for the wait, Yamanaka-san. We are very busy tonight, as you can see ".

"No problem, I was worried something happened to you",she smiled and took the pizzas.  
"Guys,the pizza's here!" Everyone, including the sleeping couples came to eat. Naruto still wasn't there.

Sakura noticed his absence immediately. "Hey, where's Naruto? He'd never turn down food."

Everyone chuckled.

"That's what I'd like to know too", Sasuke commented.

There was a brief moment of silence. "I'll go find him" , Ino spoke up.

"Are you sure? He could be anywhere. Plus it's late" , Sakura said, worried.

But Ino didn't even hear the end of that sentence as she rapidly walked out of her place. 


	4. Chapter 4

"Why did he disappear now of all times? I threw this party for him. He's the reason we're alive. I have to find him. Where..."

She suddenly noticed him on a bench just a few blocks away from her house, with such a sad expression it almost made her cry. It was so unlike him. So hard to believe that Naruto could not be smiling. She loved that smile. She had to put it back on his face. And fast.

"Naruto?"

He quickly looked up, startled. "Hey, Ino!", he smiled, but it was fake. Ino could tell immediately.

"OK, spill."

He was stunned for a second. Had he been that easy to read? He motioned for her to sit next to him, and as she did, he sighed and turned to her.

"You got me, heheh. Well, it's just that I wish Ero-sensei and my parents could be here. I miss them, I miss them a lot. With all the battles I wasn't even thinking about that. I'm alone. I don't have anyone to be there for me. I don't want to be..."

Ino grabbed him without thinking and pulled her to herself. He was speechless.

"Baka, you're not alone. You have all of us. Sasuke and Sakura love you as if you were their brother. Everyone respects you. We all fought this war to protect you. You will never be alone."

He hugged her back and they sat in silence for a few moments.

"Hey, the pizzas arrived. Let's go eat, Naruto."

"Oh yeah, the pizza!" and he was gone in the blink of an eye. Ino smiled to herself, and got right behind him.

Naruto rushed in, only to find everyone else sitting at the table, not eating. There was one whole pizza left on the table. Ino followed shortly after. |

"We figured you two would be hungry when you got back, so we left you some", Hinata told them.

"Some? You left the whole pizza! Thanks, guys!"

As she and Naruto sat at the table, the others got up and went to the living room.

"Hey, where are you going?"

"We all ate, and we figured you guys would want some privacy" , Sakura winked at Ino.

Both went as red as a strawberry, and Ino shouted insults at Sakura, who was laughing in the living room along with the rest.

"That forehead... Oh, there are no more clean plates. Just wait a second while I wash these, ok?"  
She went to the sink and started washing the dishes. As she finished washing the last plate, she felt a presence behind her and turned around. She came face to face with Naruto, his expression unreadable.

"Is it true? That you don't like any of the guys?"

She didn't know how to answer. Lie, or say the truth?

"Answer me, Ino."

"Why are you asking me that all of a sudden? What has gotten into you?"

Just a little while ago, she said he'd never be alone. True, he had his friends, he was now a hero. But if he didn't tell her now, he'd truly feel alone forever.

"Because I like you."

Ino nearly dropped the plate at his statement. She stared at him with eyes wide, mouth agape, and as much she wanted to reply, she couldn't. She felt as if she was paralyzed. 

He continued.

"But I know you only see me as a friend. You deserve much better, I can't give you all that you want and deserve."

She composed herself, came closer to him and put her hand over his mouth.

"I would choose you over everything else."

Not it was his turn to be speechless. She closed the distance between them and kissed him lightly. He pulled her closer, so that there was no space between them and kissed her passionately.

Sounds of clapping and wolf whistles were heard again, and it snapped them out of their daze.

"Can't wait to see little Uzumakis running around!" , Sasuke shouted, smirking.

Now it was their turn to blush scarlet, as everyone laughed.

Who would have thought it would turn out like that? Life looked much better for Sasuke and Naruto. They weren't going to be alone anymore.


End file.
